More "Moderates"

A man holds up a poster of U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in a demonstration supporting Hizbollah outside the Palestinian Authority headquarters during Rice's visit in the West Bank city of Ramallah, July 25, 2006. REUTERS/Ammar Awad (PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES)

Memoirs of an Al-Geisha

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, clad in a Tajik national robe, attends the opening of a mountain tunnel north of the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, on Wednesday, July 26, 2006. The tunnel, built with the Iranian financial assistance, will fascilitate travel between the Tajik capital and the country's northern provinces. (AP Photo/Misha Japaridze)

I'll have "Not Funny Former Contestants" for $200 please, Alex

'Jeopardy' champ Ken Jennings blasts show
AP- Tue Jul 25, 8:55 PM ET
"Jeopardy!" ace Ken Jennings, who won $2.5 million during his 74-game winning streak, has a few unkind words to say about the show — and dapper host Alex Trebek.

"I know, I know, the old folks love him," Jennings writes in a recent posting, titled "Dear Jeopardy!" on his Web site.

"Nobody knows he died in that fiery truck crash a few years back and was immediately replaced with the Trebektron 4000 (I see your engineers still can't get the mustache right, by the way)."

Jennings also takes aim at the show's "effete, left-coast" categories and "same-old" format.

"You're like the Dorian Gray of syndication," he says. "You seem to think `change' means replacing a blue polyethylene backdrop with a slightly different shade of blue polyethylene backdrop every presidential election or so."

In a "correction" posted Monday on his Web site, Jennings offers an apology of sorts.

"We regret the insinuation that Mr. Alex Trebek is a robot, and has been since 2004. Mr. Trebek's robotic frame does still contain some organic parts, many harvested from patriotic Canadian schoolchildren, so this technically makes him a `cyborg,' not a `robot.'"

Edward Scissorhands has found a wife...

Dancer Sarah-Jayne Howard uses scissors as prop during a dress rehearsal of the show 'Black Milk' by New Zealand choreographer Douglas Wright at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney Wednesday, July 19, 2006. Wright uses black humor with themes of love, fear, memory and death in the show that runs at the Opera House from July 19 to 29. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

New NAFTA

In a photo provided by the Miss Universe Organization, contestants, from left, Priscila Perales, Miss Mexico 2006; Tara Conner, Miss USA 2006; and Alice Panikian, Miss Canada 2006; pose in their BSC Swimwear Thailand swimsuit at the Wilshire Grand Hotel in Los Angeles, Monday, July 17, 2006. They will compete for the title of Miss Universe 2006 during the Live NBC broadcast of the 55th annual Miss Universe competition from Los Angeles, July 23, 2006 at 9 PM (ET/delayed PT). (AP Photo//Miss Universe L.P., LLLP., Darren Decker)

Awkward

Angie lets Bush hold her hand, but she's not too happy about the end result...


REUTERS/Chris Wattie- AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth

Are you there God? It's me, Angie!

German Chancellor Angela Merkel gestures while Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) watches as they get ready for a family photo of G8 leaders and guests in St. Petersburg July 17, 2006. REUTERS/Chris Wattie (RUSSIA)

Merkel brings back the Iron Cross

German Chancellor Angela Merkel leaves the plane as she arrives to take part in the G8 Summit on Sunday in St.Petersburg's Pulkovo airport, July 15, 2006. REUTERS/www.g8russia.ru/Pool (RUSSIA)

Be mein valentine

German Chancellor Angela Merkel (R) welcomes U.S. President George W. Bush in the Baltic town of Stralsund July 13, 2006. Merkel hosts U.S. President George W. Bush on Thursday in a visit intended to solidify their ties and likely to focus on Iran and her concerns about the Guantanamo Bay prison camp. REUTERS/Wolfgang Rattay (GERMANY)

Merkel goes back to the future

Wind blows in the face of German Chancellor Angela Merkel as Marine One takes off with U.S. President George W. Bush on board after a barbecue in the north-eastern German village of Trinwillershagen at the German Baltic sea July 13, 2006. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch

"Never do that again!"

France's President Jacques Chirac speaks with France national soccer team captain Zinedine Zidane (L) at the Elysee Palace in Paris July 10, 2006. REUTERS/Philippe Wojazer (FRANCE)

BERLIN, July 10 (NYTIMES)- While Italy welcomed home its triumphant World Cup champions on Monday, France awaited a full explanation of why its national team captain, Zinédine Zidane, head-butted an opponent in the chest and was ejected from Sunday’s championship match here.

Zidane has yet to say anything publicly about the incident. But family members, in telephone interviews, said they believed the Italian defender Marco Materazzi had called Zidane, the son of Algerian immigrants, a “terrorist.”

“We think he either called him a terrorist or a son of Harkis,’’ said Mokhtar Haddad, one of Zidane’s cousins, who with friends and family studied the pivotal scene on a big screen in the family’s home village Aguemoune, 160 miles east of Algiers.

Angie trying the new "Lemon Flavor" Beer

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, and Italian Sports Minister Giovanna Melandri prior the final of the soccer World Cup between Italy and France in the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, Sunday, July 9, 2006. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

"Waves" they say...

German Chancellor Angela Merkel waves prior to the start of the World Cup 3rd place soccer match between Germany and Portugal at the Gottlieb-Daimler stadium in Stuttgart, Germany, Saturday, July 8, 2006. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

Klinsmann hearts Merkel

AP Photo/Daniel Maurer; REUTERS/Thomas Bohlen; AP Photo/Frank Augstein

July 9 (Bloomberg) -- German soccer fans, who were braced for World Cup humiliation, clogged central Berlin to celebrate the team's third-place finish as coach Juergen Klinsmann reflected on his embrace by Chancellor Angela Merkel.

``I was very proud to be hugged,'' Klinsmann, mulling the offer of a new contract, told reporters after beating Portugal 3- 1 in a playoff yesterday. ``She was at our side when times were hard and supported us when the critics were all over us. I'd like to thank her.''

Klinsmann's impact was international. Mexico's El Universal newspaper said the proliferation of flags on display across Germany hadn't been seen since World War II.

``The collective penance lasted 61 years,'' said the paper. ``It took the World Cup to put an end to it.''

Chairs are like, so Corporate...

Former Deputy Ambassador to Mongolia, Afghanistan and Sierra Leone, Ann Wright; seated left to right, peace activist Cindy Sheehan; Iraq War veteran, former Army Sgt. Geoffrey Millard; and Franciscan Friar Louis Vitale, eat their last meal before beginning the fast at midnight to end the Iraq War, in front of the White House, Monday, July 3, 2006, in Washington. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

Another "Heil" Photo

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, and President Horst Koehler walk across the pitch after Italy defeated Germany 2-0 in the semifinal World Cup soccer match between Germany and Italy in Dortmund, Germany, Tuesday, July 4, 2006. Italy won the match 2-0 after extra time. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Premiere of "Darfur Chic"

British Actress Keira Knightley arrives at the Leicester Square Odeon cinema London for the UK premier of Pirates of the Caribbean 2, Dead Man's Chest.(AFP/Shaun Curry)

"Not Bad"

AP Photo/Jan Bauer; REUTERS/Eric Thayer

"Come to Mama"

REUTERS/Thomas Bohlen (GERMANY) ; REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach